GODZILLA X TITAN 2: PREDATOR AND PREY
by Z-King
Summary: Few months have past ever since the arrival of Godzilla and the world has changed. The Titans have not been seen and Humanity is slowly growing but some changes as great as this always comes with a dark part .
1. Chapter 1

GODZILLA X TITAN 2: PREDATOR AND PREY

Based on the story by Z-King. Written by Lord Primeval

_Hello everybody! Thanks to all of you, Godzilla vs. Titan became our page's most popular story. As a token of thanks, here's the sequel you all demanded. It's recommended to newcomers to check out the first story before reading. Nothing here is owned by us. Enjoy._

Chapter one: Dawn

The forest was dark as the stars began to emerge in the sky. The trees echoed with the sounds of wildlife in natural splendor. The only bit of human interference as a single pair of people walking through the woods.

The pair was made up of a chubby young man and a skinny young woman. The young man was covered in sweat, despite the fact that it was only 71 degrees.

"Why are we out here Airi?" he complained, "If they catch us we'll be in big trouble."

The girl just sighed and turned to face the boy.

"Don't you ever listen, Daiki?" she said, becoming rather cross. "There hasn't been a sighting for months now. No Titans, not the Alpha predator, no living thing over nine feet tall. So grow a pair already."

"Gee," Daiki said, "The Titans are gone. Remember the _last_ time they said that? If I recall, the entire Wall Maria came down. So forgive me for being a little cautious!"

Airi groaned and lowered her head in defeat.

"You're right." She said, "I guess I should show a little more self-control."

Daiki placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Well," he said, "We're already out here, so let's get moving."

The duo continued on walking. Airi was just glad someone supported her choice of study; Astronomy. After all, that is why they were out here so late was due to her stargazing. About two hours ago, they saw an object fall and land somewhere out here. Airi, being the spontaneous type, decided they had to investigate right away.

After another half hour of walking, they came across something odd. Inside a relatively large ditch, a large stone mass sat quietly. The two curiously came closer.

"What is this?" Daiki asked.

"Well," Airi said, "This does rule out being a comet. Maybe a meteor? It should have left a bigger impact on the surface."

She placed her hand on the structure, seeing if she could identify the texture. She then stood still in terror. Airi could have sworn she felt a heartbeat inside the stone.

Suddenly, the structure began to crack. Then, as if it were a small ornament box, opened itself. The two humans stood back as they watched something from inside stir. The thing resembled a rather scrawny looking humanoid, but they couldn't make much out of it due to the darkness of night. The thing stood about 50 feet tall, slouching slightly. The thing turned its head, glaring its glowing eyes at Airi and Diaki. It roared as it lumbered forward.

"Airi, RUN!" Diaki shouted, pulling her away from the monstrosity.

The thing reached out his thin, spidery hand as the two ran off. Like darts, a few shards of crystal flew from the creature's hand. They scattered around them, until one made its way into Diaki's leg. He fell over in agony, literally pined to the ground thanks to the crystalline substance.

"Diaki!" Airi shouted.

"Just go! GO!" he yelled, trying to mask the pain.

But it was too late, the thing had caught hold of her. It slowly brought her closer to its face, ignoring the struggle from Airi. In one swift motion, the thing bit into her flesh, tearing her completely in two.

Diaki closed his eyes, facing the ground. He didn't want to admit what he saw just happened. He couldn't breathe. He looked back up, seeing the creature towering above him. The last thing he saw before his death was the thing's horrible hand coming towards him.

_A/N: This concludes the first chapter. Join us next time for the true main characters, who won't be dead. Or maybe they will, I make no promises._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Illusion of Peace

_A/N: I hope you all enjoyed the little teaser that was chapter 1, so here's chapter two! Keep in mind that this story follows under the continuity of the first story and some plot details won't follow in the show's order. Once again, nothing here is ours._

It was a sight nobody thought they would see: expansion. Just a week away from the Wall Maria, a new district was being prepared. A district that would soon be named Tanakibo.

Five years ago, such a thing could never happen. No one would dare set a single toe outside the walls, but times have changed. Thanks to a hulking beast that came from nowhere, the Titans were scarcely seen. During a small attack just six months ago a small iron mine was discovered. Historia, who was proven to be true royalty and claimed the throne, ordered a mine to be built, resulting in a new district to be formed.

Off in the distance, was a small group of people coming towards the city. This was the Survey Corps. Near the center of the line was a familiar set of individuals. One of them, Eren Yeager, was known wide by another name, The Rouge Titan.

Along with his friends, Mikasa and Armin, the Survey Corps were suspended for weeks. Thanks to the great predator, any Titan activity was so scarce it wasn't even necessary to go out looking for them. Due to the importance of this project, the military had been switching branches around, having entire branches guard this small town.

"I can't believe it." Armin said out loud, "we get to safe guard the first new settlement in a century!"

"Keep calm Armin," Mikasa said, "pretty soon there will be more cities like this all over the place soon enough."

"Excuse me for having a sense of grandeur." Said Armin.

"I'm all for it too Armin," Eren said, "a world without Titans is the only one I ask for."

They had arrived at the entrance of the city. Levi raised his hand giving the order to stop. Everyone halted as he began to speak up.

"Alright," he called out, "Listen up; I'm dividing you to different posts. Everyone on my right is on front border watch, everyone to my left is on back border watch. On the boarders are lookout towers. Eren, Mikasa, Armin, and everyone else in center: you're central patrol. If anyone sees anything over 10 feet tall, light the signal flares inside the tower, that's Center patrol's signal to leap into action and take the problem down. Any questions?"

There was a silence.

"Alright then," He continued, "everyone get into positions."

_Meanwhile…_

The waves bounced off the rock on the end of the coast. The sounds of the water remain unheard by human ears. But it wasn't a mere human who was there.

On the Cliffside, Reiner watched the Sea. He stood completely motionless as the ocean remained calm. Behind him came another Shifter, Ymir.

"Is your little 'experiment' working?" she asked, barely even showing any emotion.

The once calm waters turned to chaos as a large torrent exploded towards the sky. Emerging from the water were two colossi locked in fierce combat. The first creature was a gigantic octopus, one Reiner has nicknamed Daidako. The second was a more fearsome beast, a saurian the people of this world came to call The Great Predator. To another, his name is Godzilla.

"You tell me." Reiner sneered.

The two shifters watched as the Kaiju duo fought. Daiako has engulfed Godzilla's body with tentacles, causing the beast to struggle. Eventually, Godzilla was able to free one of his hands. Using his claw, he removed the tentacle that held his mouth shut, just to have another wrap it right back down.

Realizing he couldn't struggle against this Cephalopod foe, Godzilla decided to take a more energetic approach. His spines lit in their warm orange glow as he prepared to strike back. A powerful blast of radioactive heat tore Daikado's tentacles, giving him more breathing room. His arm completely free for a second, he took hold of Daikado's body and pushed with all his strength.

The monstrous invertebrate struggled against the colossal reptile, keeping on tight. What it didn't see however, was Godzilla's tail. Able to find a gap, Godzilla pried his tail between the eight limbed opponent and himself. Then, like a crowbar, he used his tail as extra leverage to fling the hapless mollusk away.

Diakado landed on the shore, wriggling around to get into walking position as Godzilla slowly advanced forward. Desperate, the octopus used its tentacles to pick up many of the large rocks scattered across the rocky shore.

Godzilla finally placed his feet on dry land as Diakado prepared to strike. Diakado flung rocks, one by one, at his oncoming attacker. Godzilla was able to dodge half of them, but was inevitably hit by the other. One lucky shot was enough to throw off his balance, causing him to tumble onto his side.

Reiner couldn't help but smile as Diakado crawled towards the fallen beast. Godzilla lay there as the monster Mollusk made its way towards him. Once again, Diakado had forgotten about Godzilla's tail, which he was now right under. In one motion, Godzilla whipped his tail, taking the octopus with it. Slammed onto the ground, Diakado was left stunned for a few seconds.

Godzilla had made his way back to his feet, towering over the paralyzed cephalopod. He began to punch the octopus repeatedly as it was down. Luckily for Diakado, he had one more defense; he squirted a jet of thick, slimy ink right into Godzilla's face. Surprised in blindness, Godzilla grasped his face and shrieked. This allowed Diakado to climb Godzilla's back, making his way to the dinosaur's face.

Diakado clung tightly to Godzilla's head, making an attempt to squish the reptile's skull and feed off his flesh. The spines on Godzilla's back began to glow once more. The octopus's body glowed as well, giving a clue to his fate. Diakado's body burst into flames as the red beam blasted through his carapace. The massive body plopped on the ground, burning and lifeless.

Raising his head, Godzilla opened his jaws and let loose his trademark roar, alerting all to his victory.

"Damn." Reiner said, staring at Godzilla. "Damn you."

"Did you honestly expect an octopus to kill that thing?" Ymir asked.

"No," he said, lowering his head in frustration. "Just hoped to learn. To learn its weakness, see if it had something we could use. A blind spot, an allergy, anything we can use against this thing. Every day that monster lives is another delay in our mission. None of us are safe; Titan, Shifter, we're all just another appetizer to him."

Ymir placed her hand over his shoulder. She may not have completely agreed with the plan, but she had one simple choice; stay with her kind and survive, or risk the lives of hundreds by siding with the humans. If it meant keeping Historia safe, she had to pick the Titan's side.

But that wasn't all this was about. She knew the hidden motive Reiner had. He wanted Godzilla dead. Almost a year ago the monster had killed off Bertolt, who was not only the strongest of the shifters, but was Reiner's greatest friend.

Reiner wanted revenge. She could tell by the way he looked as he stared at Godzilla returning to the Sea. He brushed off her hand and turned around.

"Back to base," he said, "We're done here."

She followed him back to the forest, but not before Reiner took a look back at the saurian beast descending.

_Soon,_ he thought to himself, _soon the Great Predator will fall._

They made their way back to the woods, safe once again from the detection of humans. What they didn't see, however, was a pair of eyes watching their every move.

_A/N: special thanks goes out to the followers of the original story for coming back; you guys are awesome! The next chapters will be a bit longer so expect longer time in-between you all next time!_


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Civil Matters

_A/N_: _welcome back everybody, Lord Primeval here again to continue the saga. Once more, we here at Z-King don't own anything here. Enjoy._

The newly paved streets of Tanakibo were bustling with activity. People of multiple ages were purchasing goods from the new marketplace, with some stall just opening today for the first time. Men toiled around the buildings; shingling the roofs, fine tuning walls, and installing windows all over the city.

All of the youngsters, however, were in the Town Center. This area was left mostly untouched by the hands of humanity, save for a fountain or two. Eren and his friends made it to the Town Center, awaiting for any signs of attack or unusual activity. They gazed around to see the children busy at work, making paper lanterns and cutting ribbon on the grass.

"What's with all the green?" Mikasa asked. She was referring to the fact that all of the Children, including a large portion of the townsfolk, were wearing clothing with green colors.

"Grey." Armin answered.

"What?" Mikasa asked.

"They're wearing Charcoal Grey, not green." Armin said.

"Don't you remember?" Levi said, "Everyone here is a member of The Children of Deliverance. That's their colors. Not a very good choice of color I might add…"

Levi was right of course. When the idea for the province was proposed, no one wanted to go out that far away from the walls. Too many were afraid of the Titans possibly still out there.

One group of people however, was the followers of a new faith: The Children of Deliverance. Their entire faith revolves around the Great Predator. They agreed to be the workforce behind this new chapter in human expansion, in exchange for first claim rights.

This fact was further highlighted by the Town Square's centerpiece: a statue of Godzilla, the Great Predator himself. In front of the statue, a circle of youngsters meditated, under the watch of an adult woman with medium-cut hair.

"I guess you weren't too far off when you asked if it was a god Armin." Eren said, "I think they would agree with you."

Eren couldn't help but stare at the stone version of the saurian savior. It had been months since he last encountered the _real _Godzilla.

"Alright," said Levi, "I trust you all can handle yourselves from here?"

"Yes sir." The group said in unison.

"Good," he continued, "be sure not to interfere-"

Levi's instructions were interrupted by the sounds of stone hitting stone. They turned to see children screaming as rocks hit the statue repeatedly.

The source of the commotion came from the left as a group of people in robes came walking in.

"These people are lying to you children," a man with long hair called out. "They keep you from the truth and plague your mind with lies."

This was Pastor Monroe, he was Pastor Nick's replacement after his death. Where Pastor Nick wasn't the quietest man about his faith, this man was abrupt and loud.

"If you stay out here you all will die at the hands of the Titans."

"But," a young girl said, "The Great predator-"

"Is an _animal_," he continued, "and animals have only two instincts: kill and survive. And he'll turn on you all soon enough. Return to the Walls children, they are forgiving and will take you back."

Eren clenched his fist. How dare Monroe, telling these children to live in a cage their entire lives, rotting inside while the world is ready to be explored again. It made him sick to his stomach. He braced himself, ready to run at him and give him the beating he deserved.

Suddenly, a hand came to his chest, stopping him in his tracks. For some odd reason, he felt a sudden rush of calmness. He looked to see it was the Women from the Meditation circle. She wore a charcoal grey robe with large circular earrings. She walked over to the situation.

"What are you doing?" she said, "harassing children and defacing our property?"

"Harassing?" Monroe said, "We're trying to save these children from harm, from the fate _you people_ sentenced them to. Only within the Walls can you be truly protected."

"Where were your walls during the attack on Trost?" the woman asked, "Where were your walls when countless civilians were slaughtered? They crumbled and fell. Is that the protection you offer to them?"

Monroe slapped her, knocking her to the ground.

"Who the hell do you think you are?!" Monroe yelled. "How dare you blaspheme in my face?"

Eren finally lost it. He raised his fist as he lunged at Monroe, jabbing him in the stomach. The other members of the Wall Cult were about to join in and take Eren down, but the rest of the Survey Corps took hold of them.

Monroe shook on the ground, groaning in pain from the hit.

"You little…" Monroe said. He didn't finish due to another hit to his abdomen.

"That's enough out of you." Eren said.

"I want these men out of here NOW!" Levi ordered. "And if I see them again I want them arrested."

The Wall worshipers were escorted out by a group of Survey Corps members. Eren reached out his hand to the women on the ground.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

She took hold of his hand, prying herself up.

"I'm fine." She said, "Thank you. I'm just glad the children are alright. I take it you're Eren Yeager?"

"How did you-?"

"Let's just say I have a knack for sensing these things." She said with a mischievous smile on her face.

Levi came up next to them.

"Everything alright here?" he asked.

"Everything's fine here Commander," she said, "Are all of your men as impulsive as Eren here?"

"I'd hope not." Levi answered. "Eren Yeager, this is Miss Miki Saegusa; high priestess of The Children of Deliverance."

"The pleasure is all mine," Miki said. "Children, say hello to Commander Levi and Eren Yeager."

The children responded with a greeting in unison.

"Take a good look at their uniforms," she continued, "there will be people with the same jackets all over town starting today. You will all have to listen to what they say, because they'll be watching over all of us for a while."

The children nodded and returned to their activities. Some children decided to approach the Survey Corps members, their minds filled with curiosity. Each one was eager to ask their questions.

_Meanwhile…_

Reiner and Yimir were halfway through the forest, concealed by gigantic trees over 60 meters tall. Unbeknownst to the humans of Tanakibo, they were hidden from them by just being in the forest feet hundred feet away from them.

They were lucky. Months prior, the Survey Corps sent a team to check these woods for Titan activity. They avoided detection at their base, so well hidden even _they_ forgot where it was at times.

"Does this mean we have to put Plan B into effect?" Yimir asked, probably just to break the silence.

"Looks like we'll have to." Reiner replied, "We don't have that many options left to…"

Yimir took hold of Reiner's shoulder.

"What?" he asked.

Suddenly, he felt it. The ground began to shake beneath them.

A few feet away from them, they saw a great explosion of dust and rocks erupting from the ground. They hid behind one of the large trees as the dust and stones caught up with them. They could hear the sounds of collapsing rock from behind the tree.

Then they hear another sound. This time, it was a buzzing sound. Like a fly or a beetle, only amplified to an impossible degree.

Once the sounds cleared and all was silenced, the two Shifters opened their eyes again, peering behind the thick tree to examine the area.

Where once another patch of forest was, there was now was a large hole. About half a mile wide, or more, it seemed like the entrance to some large man-made tunnel. As they looked down, they saw the tunnel just go down for what seemed like no end.

"What the hell…?" she asked herself.

"It looks like a landslide," Reiner said, "We should go with a little more caution. We need to get back to base, make sure the supplies didn't get damaged."

Yimir just nodded and followed suite. As they walked away, the cloud of dirt finally cleared to reveal something at the bottom of the tunnel: a strange, crystalline rock growing from the side of the tunnel.

_Meanwhile…_

At the north-east end of the border, a Survey Corps member watched the area fiercely from the watchtower. His two partners, however, seemed distracted by themselves.

"And then," the first man said, "she says, 'well that explains the blood, but why is _he _naked?'"

They both cried out in laughter.

"Dammit you two!" the watchful man yelled, "Can't you two be quiet? If I'm going to do all of the work, then at least let me concentrate!"

"Com'on Tyler," the second slacker said, "The worst that could happen here is a simple riot. What? Do you honestly think a Titan is gonna sneak up on us? Am I right mark?"

The first slacker, Mark, just stood dumbfounded.

"Mark?" Tyler asked, "Are you ok?"

Mark pointed behind them. They turned around, gazing in disbelief at what they were witnessing. From the forest, something took flight. Ten large, thin objects flew from the forest with great speed.

Soon enough, they swarmed past the Watchtower, hitting with enough force to knock it completely over, shattering it on impact.

Tyler, the only human inside left alive, struggled against a large hunk of wood that pinned him to the ground. He reached into the rubble, pulling out the signal flare. With the last bit of life he had left in him, he aimed it at the sky.

It fired, letting out a Purple colored stream of smoke and light. It was the only hope to warn the city…

…as that's where the monster objects were heading.

_A/N: if you happen to know the Shadow of Colossus theme, next chapter would be the time to play it! See you all next time!_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: An unusual day on the Job

_A/N_: _Hello followers and newbies, I hope you remember my advice from last chapter, because the action starts right now!_

Levi and Eren were surrounded by children, each ready with their own questions.

"How far can you fly?" one child asked.

"We Don't _fly_," Levi sneered, "the gear only allows us to glide on air. Perpetual motion takes care of the rest."

"How big do you get when you become a Titan?" another child asked.

"15 meters," Eren answered, "at the very…"

Eren stop as his sights set on the horizon. A long trail of purple smoke slithered in the sky. It was an emergency. He looked over to Levi, who also noticed.

They weren't the only ones; the entire Central Patrol group ran off, grappling whichever building was nearby.

"Sorry," Eren said, "Duty calls."

Eren darted off as quickly as he could. He aimed his grappler, pulling him onto the rooftops thanks to the help from a jet of pressurized gas. The two ran and leapt from roof to roof, making their way towards the source of smoke.

They had finally caught up with the rest of the team, seeing an area of town demolished. The ash and dust was incredibly thick, obscuring view.

The order was given to hold, as it would be unwise to attack without visuals. Eren gazed fiercely at the cloud of ash, able to see some kind of movement.

_Whatever it is,_ Eren thought, _it has to be huge. A Titan? After months of inactivity, have they come back?_

The answer seemed to be much stranger.

The thick cloud of ash faded, showing what looked like a gigantic human's silhouette.

"30 meter class," Hange called out, "possibly a Deviant Type."

Her suspicions were almost immediately debunked as the smoke cleared completely. The figure that stood before them was in fact an insect. A praying Mantis to be exact. Towering at 30 meters, its exoskeleton bore a greenish-gray color, complementing its bright yellow eyes. It stood there, cleaning its scythe-like appendages. In one world, this species did have a name; Kamacuras.

"That is one seriously deviant type." Connie spoke out.

The gigantic mantis was not alone; behind it six more emerged, walking past the first one and into the city. Four more followed suite.

"Everyone scatter!" Levi yelled, "Don't let any of them go further into the city!"

The hundreds of Survey Corps soldiers went off, scattering in different directions.

Connie, Jean, and Armin went to take out the Mantis to the left. Eren, Mikasa, and Levi went to take the one to the right. Mobilt, Hange, and Sasha went to the center Mantis.

Jean decided to go for the first strike, jetting strait for the colossal invertebrate. Grappling the monster's shoulder, he propelled himself towards the creature's neck. The monster mantis noticed his advance and began to swing its arm towards the human.

Jean quickly flipped midair, dodging the insect's attack. Connie decided to take advantage of the distraction and leapt forward. He managed to glide onto the monster's arm, making his way to the neck. He made it.

He raised both blades, dual slashing the usual weak spot. But all it did was scratch the exoskeleton, the blade didn't cut through.

"I don't think the usual plan is going to work here!" he yelled.

"Then come up with something new!" Jean shouted, trying to regain momentum.

Meanwhile, Sasha and her group where having similar troubles. The Mantis kept swatting at them like flies. The group wasn't able to get a hit in due to the fact that these things moved quicker than the Titans they were used to.

"Its primary weapon," Hange said, avoiding a swipe from the creature, "Seems to be using slash-attacks. It doesn't appear to use blunt force. Armored exoskeleton, flight capabilities…"

"Any time you want to give us its weakness," Moblit said, slashing at one of the monster's legs, "would be great. Now focus on staying alive!"

Sasha had an idea of her own. Maybe attacking the eyes would be a good start. She unleashed her grappling hooks to two nearby chimneys. She pulled herself back, preparing to slingshot her way up to the creature's face. She released herself, letting out a jet of gas to keep her momentum.

Halfway up, she realized the major problem with her plan; the creature could see her!

With a swing the monster insect back-handed her away, sending her flying right towards the Market district. She tumbled, making it hard to tell when to dispatch the hooks again. All she could do was spurt out gas to lower her speed. Fortunately, a vegetable stand broke her fall.

She got back up, covered with the remains of what once was good produce.

"My cabbages!" the stand owner yelled out.

Sasha ignored the stand owner, grabbing a zucchini and a tomato she took off to rejoin her crew.

One of the other Mantises was making its way towards a granary. Eren and his group made their way over.

"Mikasa," Eren said, "I've told you before, I don't need your protecting!"

"You never did listen too well," she said, "I'm always going to protect you. You just don't have a choice in the matter."

"If our little lover's quarrel is over," Levi interrupted, "We need to focus on that thing attacking the city."

Mikasa opened her mouth, as she was going to yell that it wasn't like that at all. But she closed it immediately as she realized Levi was right. They had to drop the argument in order to keep this territory intact.

Levi took charge, climbing up the creature's back and performing his signature takedown on the neck. Like Connie just a few hundred feet away, all it did was leave a few scratches. It was like trying to cut a crab with a toothpick.

"I highly doubt this thing is a Titan!" Levi cried out.

This had Eren confused. If this thing isn't a Titan, then what the hell is it? And more importantly, how could they stop them?

At this point, the gigantic insects were so preoccupied with the puny humans, they didn't even move from their positions, desperate to kill the tiny organisms that halted their search for food. That was the good news. The bad news was, there was still a swarm of gigantic insects on the loose.

The biggest victory here was that they were too over-whelmed to fly, like a butterfly being swarmed by ants.

At this point, the large monsters could be seen from the far end of town, causing panic. Even the children in the Town Center could see the carnage.

"Children please," Miki called out, "remain calm! Just remember what I've taught you and join hands."

Each child sat down in place, holding whoever's hand was nearest to them. Eventually, there was a long line of children linked in hands, all the way to Miki herself. Everyone then closed their eyes and remained still.

Connie and Jean were struggling against the colossal invertebrate, since they couldn't actually hurt the thing, they had to either lure it out of the city or capture it. And it wasn't willing to comply with either option.

Armin circled around the creature, trying to think of something. He then remembered- this was an _insect!_ Testing his theory, he shot his Grappling line, aiming at the knee of the creature's first front leg.

The hook hit between the segments, into the flesh. The monster mantis screeched out in pain.

"What the hell did you do to it?" Connie yelled out, landing on a rooftop.

"It's an Insect," he called out, "all insects have segmented bodies that connect to-"

"In English please!" Yelled Jean, avoiding another swing by the monster.

"Attack its joints," Armin called out again, "and were the limbs meet the body. Those areas won't be armored!"

Jean and Connie looked at each other and nodded. This sounded insane, but Armin's track record showed that his plans were ninety percent solid. They leaped in unison, releasing their grappling hooks at the elbow joints. They hit their targets, causing the Mantis to shriek even louder. They then flew at the enormous insect and landed on each of its forearms.

They took out their blades and dug them as far as they could into the elbow joints. As the creature cried out in agony, the two Corps members preformed a crouching run, guiding their blades to a circling pattern.

As they made a full circular slash, the arms flung off with a torrent of yellow blood. Armin took charge, hooking onto the area were the torso and waist of the creature met. He crossed his arms, with blades in hand, and performed a flawless cross-slash.

The attack worked, causing more yellow mantis blood to pour out. The creature toppled over, the nerves connecting to the legs severed. It lay twitching on the street, bleeding to death.

"Good eye there Armin," Jean said, admiring the kill.

"Don't thank me yet," Armin said, "We have to let the others know what we've learned or the city will become a giant feeding ground."

The three scattered, each going in a different direction. Armin was off not only to warn the others of the new plan in attack, but also to make sure the two people he cared about most were still safe.

Fortunately, they were still safe. But for how long was still uncertain.

So far, their only plan was to aim for the eyes. Eren thought that going Titan would be too risky, as he didn't want to cause any more unnecessary damage to the city.

Levi swung to another rooftop, ready to get a new angle. The Mantis caught sight of Levi, performing an upwards slash. This tethered the line, sending Levi flying upwards. Before he knew what to do, the Mantis used its other scythe to swipe him downwards, right into the creature's mouth.

Levi could feel the grinding on his legs as the monster pulled him into its maw further. Mikasa ran up the creature's arm, grappling into the Mantis's right eye. Distracted, the monster opened its mouth long enough for Mikasa to pull him out.

Levi was able to escape, covered in insect saliva, but otherwise unharmed. Mikasa, however, was not so lucky. The Mantis preformed a downward sweeping motion, flinging her down towards the street.

"Mikasa!" Eren Yelled, launching himself towards her.

She was able to fire off the grappling hooks, but due to damage taken by the monster, the mechanism malfunction. The ropes entwined as she fired them. She hung suspended off the ground, entangled in her own gear.

The creature lumbered towards her, preparing to end her intrusion. It raised its claw, attempting to impale her.

A sudden gust of steam rushed out at the monster, concealing sight for a solid second. As it cleared, it was revealed that a pair of hands had stopped the claw in its place. These hands belonged to one of humanity's greatest weapons; Eren Yeager, the Rouge Titan.

Eren roared at the Mantis, issuing a challenge. He then pulled with all his might, severing the claw from the gigantic insect. Holding it like a baseball bat, Eren used the severed limb to beat its former owner.

The sounds of the fight caught the attention of the other mantises, alerting them to better prey. Once the first was dead, a Kamacuras snuck up behind him and leapt on his back.

Armin landed on the rooftop next to a slime-covered Levi.

"He's gone Titan already?" Armin asked.

"Don't just stand there," Levi said, franticly trying to get as much saliva off him as he could, "Get Mikasa out of there before she get herself killed!"

Armin complied. Due to the saliva, Levi's equipment was clogged up. All he could do now was keep lookout.

Eren managed to toss the Kamacuras off his back. They were surprisingly light for being larger than his Titan form. Once the insect was down, Eren assaulted it with a multitude of poundings with his bare hands.

Another Kamacuras charged in, ramming Eren into a large building. He kicked the creature back with all his might, sending the creature into a row of freshly built homes.

While Eren roared at his fallen foe, another one crept in, crouched near his right leg. The Kamacuras bit down hard onto the Titan's leg. Eren pounded on the monster's head, drawing yellow blood. Then, pulling his leg up, he was able to grab hold of the creature and tear it off his leg.

Three more Mantises came crawling towards him. Eren threw the Kamacuras he removed from his legs and charged in. one of them made a slash attack, just missing Eren by a hair. Eren held on to the creature's shoulder and stomach punched the Kamacuras.

Another one crept in, ready to bite into Eren's neck. Luckily, he noticed it right away and slamed the two mantises into each other. He stomped furiously on the pile of knocked out invertebrates, creating a gigantic crunching sound that could be heard a mile away.

Meanwhile, the one from earlier he had tossed into a few buildings got back on its feet. It took hold of Eren's arm with its claws clamped down tight and its jaws set. Before Eren could react, the Kamacuras tore his arm off. The attack threw off the Titan's balance, causing him to trip over.

Eren performed a sweeping kick, hard enough to break all four of its legs and send it tumbling down. While the Kamacuras fell, Eren took hold of its neck and slammed the creature's head into the ground. He then brought the creatures neck back up and chomped down on the Kamacuras's throat. This was to ensure it wouldn't get back up again.

Armin had finally cut Mikasa loose, taking her to the rooftop to rejoin with Levi.

"I almost wish he didn't do that." Mikasa said, watching the carnage before them. "These things are faster and more numerous than any Titan attack we've encountered so far."

"He can handle his own," Armin said, "but we should be ready to assist at any time."

Two more mantises fell at Eren's hands. Another managed to take hold of his remaining arm, stopping him in his tracks. A second Kamacuras took hold of his right leg. He attempted to kick it away with his left leg, but another Mantis grabbed that one as well. Like a gang of bullies from his childhood, they held him into place as he struggled.

Creeping in from his other shoulder, a fourth one held onto his torso. It was opening its mouth, ready to bite into the one place that could harm him, the neck.

"No!" Mikasa yelled, activating her gear and heading to Eren's location.

"Eren!" Armin yelled as he followed.

Just as the others gnawed on Eren's body, the fourth mantis prepared to chomp down on Eren's neck.

Suddenly, a sound could be heard. Eren heard a choir of children humming in unison. What was stranger still, he wasn't hearing it with his ears. It was in his head.

The Mantises stopped in their tracks, as if something else caught their attention. They released Eren, leaving his chewed up body to fall to the ground with a giant thud. The enormous insects then began to walk away in unison.

They opened their wing cases and lifted their bodies off the ground with the beat of their wings. They flew off, returning to the forest from which they came.

Eren lay motionless on the ground, still hearing the strange song in his head. Exhausted and taken too much damage, he was expelled from his Titan body. Emerging from the neck, the song ceased.

Armin and Mikasa made it too him, lifting him off his feet.

"Are you alright?" Mikasa asked, "Speak to me Eren!"

Eren let out a cough and opened his eyes.

"Yes," he answered, "I…I think so. What…happened to those things?"

"They just flew off," Armin replied, "I don't even know why. They just…up and left."

The signal flare was released, a yellow flare, to alert all that the danger had passed.

"Where did the singing come from?" Eren asked.

"What?" Mikasa said, "What are you talking about?"

"That singing," Eren explained, "when those things ganged up on me. Couldn't you hear it?"

"We didn't hear anything Eren." Mikasa answered.

"Maybe it's another side-effect," Armin stated, "You always say weird things happen when you turn."

"I guess you're right Armin." Eren replied.

But deep down, Eren knew this wasn't normal. He _did_ hear something. But what was it? The only thing he did know for sure was that whatever was going on….

…it was just getting started.

_A/N: two things I want to say before I go: yes, I made Kamacuras smaller this time around due to this particular chapter. Second, I have no idea how to say Kamacuras in the plural form (ten points to whoever can help me with that.) be sure to stay tuned as the story continues!_

_Ps. From Z-King. The Kamacuras used in this story is the one from Final wars and be prepared more Godzilla and titan goodness are on the way!_


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Changes

_A/N_: _More mysteries and answers coming your way!_

Deep in the forest, the humming continued. It was not a sound that could be heard by ears alone, but with a mind. One mind, completely new to the environment, heard the song as it echoed through its brain. The thing in the forest listened intently as it faded away.

_Meanwhile, back in Tanakibo._

Eren's friends carried him through the town, gazing at the destruction around them. Even though only a handful of buildings were destroyed, it still weighed heavily on them. An entire corner of the city reduced to piles of rubble, rocks, and remains of giant insects slain by a rogue shifter.

The group reunited with Connie and Hange as they came halfway towards the Town Center. Hange was perched on top of a Kamacuras body, no doubt an unfortunate victim of the Survey Corps.

"Armin!" Connie yelled out as he saw them, "Everyone else alright?"

"The three of us made it out alright," Armin answered, "Levi will rejoin us shortly. Other than you, we haven't made any contact with the others. Did the message get through?"

"It went through alright," Connie replied, "thanks to your idea, we managed to take down four of these things. The rest seemed more interested in something else."

"Any idea where they went off to?" Eren asked.

"Our group saw them head out to that large patch of forest out there." He replied. "They just…up and left."

Hange leaped down from the enormous carcass and landed right beside the group.

"This specimen is very unusual," she said, "It's definitely non-Titan. None of our equipment or any of my tools can cut through the exoskeleton, so I'll have to do a chemical analysis."

She placed a few vials of what looked like the creature's blood into her bag, no doubt to study later.

Eren's mind was still focused on what Connie said. It wasn't just the creatures he tussled with, but the _entire _swarm just ceased and left. Did it have anything to do with the voices he heard?

He finally had enough strength to stand on his own two feet again. As the rest of the group debriefed one another, he had to walk a few feet, just to get the blood flowing again.

"He's not gone you know." A voice said.

Eren turned around, noticing the old man sitting just behind him.

"I'm sorry," Eren said, "were you talking to me?"

"He's not gone," the old man continued, "he just left. Left for a short time, went way up north. The trip changed him something terrible too. Stabbed you in the back, he did, and he'll be stabbing it again."

Before Eren could ask any more, a younger man came into view.

"Sorry about my father," the young man said, "he gets very delusional around sunset. Pay him no mind, he probably just spouted out nonsense. Deliverance be with you."

The man took hold of his father, taking him back inside the house. Something about the words the old man said felt like they just might be for him. Was it a warning? Some kind of message? Or was it really just some old fool rambling nonsense?

_Meanwhile…_

It was getting dark in the forest. Thanks to the enormous canopy of gigantic trees, it was twice as dark as outside. Reiner and Ymir had trekked for at least two hours from the edge of the ocean, coming back from a disappointment and a shock.

"Any word from The Beast?" Ymir asked.

"Not one." Reiner said, "It's been so long since he last shown his face. Given the odds I wouldn't…"

They both stopped dead in their tracks, shock at the new discovery. The small shelter they built, the one that took days to assemble and camouflage was completely demolished.

The large area of ground seemed to collapse in on itself into a giant chasm. Inside this chasm, other than the remains of their hiding spot, was a mass of large purple structures. The structures looked like gigantic crystalline stones, jutting out in profound shapes.

Another oddity was a large shell, almost cradled among the crystals. The shell resembled the remains from a Goose's nest. Whatever was inside was now out and about.

"What the Hell happened here?!" Reiner shouted. "First the tremor now this? Must nature itself torment us today?"

Ymir looked around, seeing if there were any clues left behind. She did find one. Plenty of them. She touched Reiner's shoulder, alerting him to what she found. The area outside the crevice was littered with footprints. Giant footprints.

One set looked like some kind of reptile, lizard maybe. The other set were stumpy and hard to identify. It almost looked like some creature was chasing another, given how hectic the layout patterns seemed to be.

"Whatever it was that did this," Reiner continued, "probably hatched from that egg there."

They looked around again, noticing the footprints that lead deeper into the forest.

"We should follow them." Ymir said, "It wouldn't be wise to ignore something that could do something on this scale."

Reiner nodded. If it could do _this_, then it could do even worse later on. They walked in the direction of the tracks, ready to investigate the other cog in their plan.

Besides, Reiner had some bottled up aggression he needed to let loose on something.

_Meanwhile…_

The rest of the Survey Corps had rejoined, tallying up the damages from the fight. So far, at least 37 casualties were reported. 12 of those were Corps members. 48 were injured, 35 of them civilians.

This was on par with an average Titan attack, back when those attacks were commonplace. It had been a long time since anyone had seen this kind of carnage.

While the debriefing went on, a large ruckus was heard. There was a massive gathering of people in the street. Eren decided to go off, activating his gear, leaving his comrades to themselves. As he landed firmly on the ground, he saw a familiar face.

It was Monroe and his followers again. This time, they had a much larger audience. Half of the town was here listening to him.

"See what happens?" Monroe yelled out, "See what happens when you run off from the truth? All of you were welcome within the walls, and you turned your back on them. See what your follies have brought upon you?"

The crowd howled at him. Many were outraged at the sight of him.

"Where was this 'Guardian protector' you all put your faith into?" he continued, "Nowhere. This noble beast you all follow has left you here to die. Come with us, back to the embrace of the three goddesses. They are permanent, stationary, and don't sleep on the job like the Great Predator."

The crowd still roared, but some were starting to see his side.

"The predator _has_ deserted us!" one man said, "It should have been here!"

"This Deliverance is becoming less and less reliable." A woman said.

Eren became distraught; they were starting to believe him. The crowd howled with different opinions and viewpoints. Mothers had to comfort their children as the crowd became more and more violent towards each other.

"I know it's upsetting," a voice from behind him said.

He turned his head to see Mikasa.

"But we can't let this get to us." she continued.

"Not let it get to me?" Eren said, his anger rising, "how can I just sit here and not feel disgust? This, this town here, is what we've been training three years for. This is what we've been fighting for and barely made it out with our lives!"

Mikasa stood there, taking in everything he was saying.

"We can't let this town go to waste." He said, "Not after everything and everyone we've lost along the way."

Eren activated his gear, swinging back to the others. His mind was clear on what had to be done. He landed right next to Hange as the Survey Corps were wrapping up their discussion.

"Very well," Levi said, "we'll place more protection along the border, then we'll be ready for them at any time."

"Sorry sir," Eren said, "but that's not going to cut it."

This caught Levi's attention.

"Alright," he said, "What do you propose Yeager?"

"We need to send a party into the forest," Eren continued, "we need to hunt the rest of them down at the source. Make sure they never resurface again."

"Are you insane Yeager?" Jean cried out, "going in there without even knowing how many of those things are out there? That's suicide!"

"You saw what he did to those things earlier." Armin spoke out, "He took out a majority of them with his bare hands. I think we should consider sending him out there to deal with the problem directly."

"Last I checked," Jean continued, "he almost got torn apart by the last ones standing. What will happen what they decide to try it again?"

"I agree with Jean," Levi said before anyone started a fight, "Yeager is our best weapon, and we shouldn't risk losing him out there."

Jean smiled smugly as everyone else stood in silence.

"That's why you'll be going with him." he said.

"What?" Jean cried out, "Are you serious?!"

"Mikasa, Connie, Armin, and Hange, you'll also be accompanying Eren. You'll all have to watch his back while he takes care of them."

"What about you commander?" Hange asked.

"I'll stay here." he said, "Someone has to command the pigs here. You'll head out tomorrow morning before dawn with as much spare gas as we can spare."

Eren gave a sigh of relief. His plan was allowed to go forward. Tomorrow, he would fight to keep the dream humanity has had for over a century yet again.

But how many of these monsters were out there? And how long would it take to eradicate them in that deep, dark forest?

_Meanwhile…_

The deeper the shifters traveled into the forest, the harder it became to navigate. Structures identical to the ones back at the base became more and more commonplace as they went further. Not to mention, there was a small bit of fog covered the ground they walked on.

Ymir became confused at all of this. None of these things were here when they arrived. They must have gone through this area at least a few dozen times before, but none of this was ever here.

As if to make matters worse, the ground began to shake again. Ymir and Reiner braced themselves for what was about to happen….

_A/N: well, that's the latest chapter. I'll be taking a small vacation for a week or two, so you might not get the next one right away. In the meantime, check out our other stories. Till next time!_

_Ps. While we appreciate the reviews, comments, and questions, we would like to remind you all: WE CAN ONLY RESPOND TO COMMENTS BY REGISTERED MEMBERS. If you don't have an account, we CANNOT answer any of your questions. Don't take it personally, it's just how the site works. You can still comment and review, but any guest questions cannot be answered._


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Into the forest.

_A/N_: _Thanks for your patience, here's a giant helping of action to reward you!_

Reiner and Ymir stood ready as the ground shook. With a sudden jolt of power, what looked like a giant tree root jetted out of the soil. They looked closer at it, realizing that this root had joints to it.

The thing in the ground pulled on the surface, revealing its true nature as it climbed out. This was no root or vine at all. Instead, it was a leg to a massive spider. The black and yellow monstrosity towered over them with a glare in its multiple eyes.

"What the hell?" Reiner said in confusion.

The behemoth arachnid, who would be named Kumunga in another world, lashed at the tiny shifters, missing them by a hair.

"Time to quit hiding," Reiner shouted, "let's make this a fair fight!"

He took out the tiny blade in his ring, ready to turn. But something unusual happened; it actually hurt him this time. Instead of shifting, he bled out. A shock went down his spine as he watched the blood trickle down his hand.

Why wasn't he turning into the Armored Titan? Had he lost the ability somehow? What was going on?

While Reiner was still dazed by this discovery, Ymir dove in, pushing him away from the gigantic fangs launching towards him.

Finally shaken, he pulled out his blades. Perhaps it was time to fight with his old tools. Sure, he was almost a year out of practice with the 3-D gear, but he was still one of the best in training. It wouldn't fail him now.

He released a jet of steam, flying off towards the giant spider. Kumunga saw him coming and leapt to the right. The spider then leapt back, launching towards the two again. Both shifters bolted in opposite directions to avoid the attack.

The two then ran amongst the trees, circling their opponent to see what kind of weakness they could exploit. Kumunga timed his next move carefully as they circled. Once the time was right, the spider released a torrent of silk webbing at Reiner, entangling him to the tree.

Cocooned to the tree, he couldn't move his arm to reach the blades by his feet. All he could do was listen to the clicking sounds of the spider.

As the arachnid came closer to the incapacitated shifter, Ymir ran towards him. She lifted herself into the air, posed to strike, and jammed her sword into Kumunga's eye. The spider groaned in pain as it tried to shake the tiny human off its head.

She leapt into the air again, taking out another one of the monster's multiple eyes. She jumped down to the ground ready to take the next strike.

Kumunga had enough and decided to flee. It bolted deeper into the forest as its shrieks grew quieter and quieter.

With the Kaiju gone Ymir made her way up the tree. She slashed at the thick webbing with all her might. Thanks to the size of the creature, it was like cutting through a thousand ropes at once. Finally, she got him free. Due to a combination of accelerated heartbeat and lack of air, Reiner was out cold. All she could do now was sit beside him on that branch and wait for him to wake up.

Right now, both of them were easy targets.

_The next morning…_

The members of the Survey Corps had made their way to the entrance of the forest. Earlier, they had witnessed Monroe and thirty percent of the town's citizens make an exodus from the area. Eren let that image stay in his mind, keeping it as a reason to keep his eyes on the mission: slay the monsters lurking here so this never happens again.

Beside him were his closest friends, whom were behind him one hundred percent. Even after he demanded that Mikasa stay behind with Levi, she still wouldn't budge. He was beginning to grow tired of that habit.

Hange was in command during the expedition. Her skills and intelligence was thoroughly needed in this mission. It was a decision no one debated against. Except maybe Moblit, he had a few things to say.

Twenty minutes in and one mission go flare later, they had already examined two and a half miles worth of forest. Nothing out of the ordinary, nothing unnatural. It was oddly quiet. That was about to change.

They heard a grunting sound in the distance. Connie listened to tell where it was coming from.

"Its east of here," he said, "About 20 yards."

The group followed Connie's direction. The groans became louder and louder until the source was in plain sight.

Before them lay a Titan, at least a 15 to 16 meter class. It was still alive but barely moving as it lay on the ground. Its eyes were bloodshot and its skin was a pasty white. Another abnormality was a giant wound on its shoulder.

"That can't be right," Armin said, "the blood around it is quagulated. Its wound should have healed before that could even happen. Something's wrong here."

Hange of course wouldn't let such a new and bizarre situation go to waste. She charged in on her horse to get a closer look.

"Hange! Wait!" Moblit cried out.

"This is so intriguing!" she called out.

Once the horse came within ten feet of the fallen behemoth, she leapt off of its back. Landing on the beast's massive shoulder, she went unnoticed as the Titan breathed heavily. She pulled out her equipment as the rest of the team circled. They didn't want to risk her getting hurt.

"Anything yet?" Jean asked.

"The wound is completely dried out," she called back, "fascinating."

She examined the interior, noticing it went down in an almost syringe-like fashion. She had seen this somewhere before.

"It's a bite!" she called out. "Something injected it with venom."

"Do you know how ridiculous that sounds?" Jean yelled. "Now these Mantises are poisonous?"

"Last time I checked," Connie replied, "they didn't grow to 30 meters either."

As they spoke, a black figure crawled its way out of the wound. It resembled some kind of large sea louse, with two stingers at the end. Unbeknownst to the human observers, its name was Shockirus, and it saw an opportunity for a new meal.

Distracted, Hange was leapt upon by the Shockirus, forcing her to tumble down the Titan's carcass. The other teammates rushed over to her as she struggled against the giant arthropod. The creature was so close to her face she could see the proboscis in-between the mandibles.

Before the others could reach her, more Shockirus emerged from the near-dead Monster. At least thirty of the 1 meter long invertebrates came leaping towards the humans. Most of them landed on the horses, driving their needle-like mouths into their flesh. Startled, many steeds knocked off their masters.

As the horses were becoming consumed, the humans struggled to swat the creatures away with their blades.

Armin rushed over, slipping through the crowd and darting towards Hange. He swung as hard as he could, knocking the arthropod off of her and into a tree.

"What are these things?" he said, attacking a group coming in behind him.

"Parasites." She said, "Draining the bodily fluids from the Titan. I guess the healing factor gives them a near infinite food supply."

"Yeah," yelled Moblit, "and where the hell did they come from?"

"It doesn't matter," Eren yelled out, "We just have to fight them off!"

The swam just kept coming back, desperate to defend their new home. Only a few of the humans were able to deal critical blows. As they fought, the majority of their horses were killed, completely drained to lifeless shells by the Shockirus.

Eren lifted his hand, ready to clamp his teeth into it and transform.

"Not yet Eren," Mikasa called out, "we need to save it for-"

Her explanation was cut short due to a sneak attack from a Shockirus. It latched itself onto her neck.

"MIKASAAAAAA!" Eren yelled, charging his way to her.

He swatted away any Shockirus that came in his path. He took hold of the parasite and yanked it off of her. He began to beat the helpless creature on the trunk of the nearest tree. Over and over, he beat it against the bark like a dirty rug. Even with the creature's blood spilling all over, he continually beat the Shockirus. No one attacks his family. No one.

He may have even beat the thing all night if it weren't for the gigantic thud. It echoed through the trees, like a tussle between giants was coming closer. This caught the Shockirus's attention.

The swarm then began to retreat. Returning to the still breathing Titan, they disappeared from sight. The ground shook slightly while they scurried into the monster's flesh.

"Now what?" Jean cried out.

The answer came about 20 feet away from them in the form of a large round object hurtling east of them. It was stopped by a gigantic sickle-like appendage. It was another Kamacuras. A second later, an entire group of them emerged from the forest, intent on feeding on the round object.

"Remember what Armin told you all," Connie called out. "Let's go!"

The pack of humans leapt into the air, ready to strike. Thanks to the thick forest trees, they had more objects to grapple onto. They had the advantage here.

The humans went unnoticed as the giant Mantises were trying to break into whatever it was they caught. Hange caught one's attention by twirling in air in its face. She then sprang with a jet of steam propelling her into the insect's eye.

Connie and Armin circled around, gaining the best viewpoint. Once they were in position, they dodged an attack from a claw and jolted in, slashing two of the monster's legs.

Like a swarm of vicious mosquitoes, the Survey Corps dodged and attacked the gigantic invertebrates, taking a few of them down right off the bat.

_Meanwhile…_

Feeling dazed, Reiner awoke besides Ymir. He felt like he was hit by a 2x4 in the back of his head.

"What…what happened?" he asked.

"That spider tangled you up," she said, "You passed out while I took care of it."

"I can't believe how calm you are right now." Reiner said. "In case you hadn't noticed, I drew blood and I'm _still_ human!"

"Stay focused," she answered, "we have a-"

"Don't you understand?!" he yelled, grabbing on to her. "If I can't change into the Armored Titan, then our mission is lost! Not to mention, we're sitting ducks out here without it. That spider was proof of it."

Ymir raised her hand. She revealed that she had a wound there, inflicted by the spider the day before.

"You're not the only one who lost this ability." She said. "I can't change form either."

"What's going on around here?" he replied. "First the quake, then the crystals, then the spider, now this?"

"They have to be connected in some way." She said.

Reiner leapt from the tree, landing on the hard soil. He walked over to one of the crystalline structures. He placed his hand on it, feeling a burning sensation as it touched his skin.

He took the hand back, groaning in pain. As he turned his head back to examine the stone again, something odd happened. A large grayish lizard crawled up, basking on the stone. It seemed unaffected by the stone.

"It's the Crystals," he said, "They must be canceling our transformation somehow. But how? And where are they coming from?"

They looked around. They noticed that the deeper into the forest they went, the larger the crystal masses became. But that's not what caught Reiner's eyes.

In the distance, behind the fog, a glowing pair of eyes watched the two shifters. Standing over a hundred feet tall, the humanoid figure hunched over to get a good look.

"Hey!" Reiner shouted, his nerves getting to him.

The thing noticed him charging and began to flee. Reiner lifted his body into the air, prepared to strike. But before he could get close enough, the thing had vanished.

Gasping for breath, he landed on the ground, completely confused.

What was going on in this place?

_Meanwhile…_

All but one of the mantises fell before the might of the Survey Corps. This one was extra tricky, as it was one of the fortunate survivors of the attack yesterday. It remembered most of their tricks.

Most of the Survey Corps had their grappling lines cut from the intelligent Kamacuras. All seemed lost.

Fortunately, while the others distracted it, Armin, Sasha and Hange ran up the creature's back. They struck, jabbing their blades into the wing joints. The monster's reaction to pain gave just enough time for the other members to strike.

Jean and Moblit attacked the arms, slicing them at the joints. Mikasa and Connie took on the legs, rendering them severed on the forest floor. The limbless torso rolled on the ground, completely helpless. Eren walked up to the creature's head, jamming his blade right between the eyes. It was finally dead.

Everyone yelled out in joy. Their task seemed complete. But Mikasa wasn't celebrating. She instead walked over to Eren.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Mikasa held onto Eren's right arm, exposing a bite. One of the Shockirus had bitten into his flesh during the fight while he wasn't looking. But he gazed at it confused. If he drew blood, then why didn't he transform?

Unfortunately, he had no time to ponder on this. The round object, the one the Kamacuras had been trying to feast on, began to stir, catching everyone's attention.

Like a gigantic armadillo, it unfurled itself. The spiky reptilian creature stood on its own feet, screeching as it revealed itself. Eren looked in terror at the monster in front of him.

_A/N: well, hope that keeps you all entertained. Next time: ANSWERS!_


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Revelations

_A/N_: _Hope you're all ready!_

A thousand miles away and five hundred feet below sea level, a fissure in the earth glowed with primal power. A deep sea volcano pumped magma into the ocean depths. Towering over this aquatic volcano was the saurian master beast himself.

For weeks, this undersea volcano had been producing heat radiation. It wasn't his favorite variety, but it had produced enough to fill in the gaps of his diet. But in two weeks' time, Godzilla would be forced to find another of these food sources, this one was about to die out.

As if to answer his call, a strange sense overcame Godzilla. He sensed another power source a few miles back. It almost reminded him of the plasma power he once thrived on. While in no immediate need to replenish his power, he had an immense instinct-driven desire to investigate. He lifted his body upwards, and swam in a crocodilian manner towards the beach he came from just a day ago.

_Meanwhile…_

The humans looked up at the massive brown reptile in front of them. While not gigantic like the other creatures so far, it was two and a half times the size of a bull Elephant. On its nose was a single horn. The creature's back had a hard carapace, like a turtle's shell, adorned with bony nubs. Its tail was as long as the entire body, supporting an ensemble of spikes.

For this, my friends, was Anguirus.

Nobody dared to move. Their lines had been cut, some of them were about to run out of steam while the rest were completely empty. Their only hope now was to avoid agitating this colossal beast.

"Stay still everyone," Mobilt cried out, "It might just leave if we don't do anything."

The behemoth watched the humans, its eyes large and wide like a child's. In fact, the way it watched them was almost like a kitten seeing a mouse for the first time.

It opened its jaws, letting out a sound like a donkey's bellow mixed with a honk. It flared its nostrils, catching their scent. It stopped, something caught his nose. He turned to face Sasha. He seemed fixated on her, leaning down in what looked like a pouncing position.

It looked like it was about to strike. The creature slowly inched over to Sasha, who tried to activate her gear. As it got closer she realized it was no use. Her tank was completely empty and her lines were too badly damaged. She was trapped, about to be pinned between a tree and a giant monster.

Eren couldn't stand idly by anymore. He wasn't going to allow another teammate to die out here.

"ATTACK!" yelled Eren, "ATTACK BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE!"

With the last bit of gas he had, he launched onto the reptile's back, attacking with all his might. Mikasa, Connie, and Armin joined in, sacrificing their gear in order to stop this beast. But as they chopped and slashed the monster in vain, as the creature's carapace was too strong for their blades, the others just stood and watched as Sasha screamed.

"Come on!" Eren yelled, "We have to kill it before it kills her!"

"I... I don't think that's what it's doing…" Hange said, rather surprised.

The four stopped, leaning over to see a genuine surprise.

Sasha _was_ indeed screaming, but not do to pain. Just shock. The creature slid its tongue back and forth against Sasha's body. The monster was…licking her? None of the Survey Corps knew what was going on.

An idea came in the form of something that Armin was kneeling in. he felt a squishy, wet sensation on his right knee. Looking down, he realized he was crouching on a gigantic white flake, covered in a thick clear slime.

He picked it up, feeling he had seen this somewhere before. Then he realized it; the slime had the same feel to it as an egg yolk did. And there's only one place yolk comes from…

"It's an infant!" Armin cried out.

"What?!" cried out Connie, Jean, and Eren all at once.

"This," he said, raising the flake over his head, "is an Eggshell. This thing is a hatchling."

This was quite a shock for everyone, except for Sasha, whom the creature continued to lick.

_Meanwhile…_

As they walked, the crystals became more frequent. Ymir stayed focused, while Reiner was still silent. He was shaken from his earlier experience, that thing in the fog with its bright glowing eyes.

What was it? Where did it go? All thoughts cruising through his brain. But above all, he couldn't answer one question that bugged him to death….

Why did it feel so familiar?

Those questions had to wait, as they encountered another obstacle; a tall, wall-like crystal formation. It made sense, as the structures became larger and larger as they went deeper into the woods. They had no choice, they had to climb.

Reiner placed his hand on the structure, ready to climb. Fortunately, he had on a pair of gloves, protecting him from the crystal's burn.

"Let's just get moving." He said, paying no mind to the anomaly that just occurred.

At that moment, they heard an oncoming sound, like a hundred horses stamping their hooves at the same moment.

"Start climbing." Reiner said, giving a tone of authority.

They grappled their way up, barely missing the jaws of a new monster, one that emerged from the fog.

Just missing them by a hair, the beast revealed itself to be a grey theropod called Gorosaurus.

_Meanwhile…_

The Survey Corps had seen many unusual things today, but this was by far the most bizarre thing they had experienced in their lifetime.

Mobilt and Hange were examining the Shockirus corpses. Armin examined the creature's behavior as it chased Sasha, with Jean and Connie supervising. Thanks to Armin's suggestions, they deduced that the creature had for some reason bonded with Sasha.

"So," Jean complained, "Why exactly are we doing this?"

"If my theory is correct," he said, "Since this animal is still young, and most youngsters socialize by playing. So if we let it play for a while, it will tire itself out and let us escape."

His theory wasn't all that off. Anguirus chased Sasha, kind of in the fashion a pup would chase its siblings around the pen. Sasha on the other hand, didn't seem to enjoy having a large reptile chasing after her.

To her fortune, the creature started to doze off, laying down in exhaustion. Pretty soon, it would fall asleep.

Eren was distanced from the group, remaining silent for hours. Mikasa walked up to him.

"Are you going to just sit here all night?" she asked, "Think of what Levi would say to you right now."

"You don't seem to get it do you?" he said, becoming aggravated, "I'm not exactly in a good position right now."

"The mantises are dead," Mikasa reassured, "our mission is complete."

"Complete!?" he yelled, turning to face her with an angry glare. "We just found out that there's more out here than just them. Now we have more monsters living in here, ready to strike us when they want another bite to eat. The only reason we stood a chance before was because of me, and now look at me! My Titan form is GONE!"

He slammed his fist into a nearby tree. He hit it so hard he bled out. Mikasa could see what was going on; without Titans around to take his anger out on, he was becoming more vicious.

"Are you really going to let this get to you?" she said. "Don't forget; you are a soldier. All of that training, all of that determination, none of that should be gone just because you lost one weapon. Shifter or not, you're still Eren Yeager."

Her words were starting to sink in, but they were interrupted by Mobilt's call.

"Everyone, over here!"

The Survey Corps gathered around Hange and Mobilt as they held glass vials of odd liquids.

"We examined all three creature's blood samples." Hange said, "The Manits, the corpse-dwellers, and Sasha's new 'friend.' When we did, we came across this odd chemical in the blood; a preservative."

"You mean like in food?" Jean asked.

"Almost," Mobilt answered. "It's more organic than any I've seen. It seems that it allows cells to stay alive at least forty times the lifespan they normally could."

"Isn't it exciting?" Hange asked.

"That doesn't make any sense," Connie replied, "why would three completely different animals have a preservative in their blood?"

Sasha leaned against the Titan's body, too tired to remember the black swarming creatures inside. But that was the least of her worries at the moment…

_Meanwhile…_

The Gorosaurus chomped at the air, trying desperately to get the shifters climbing out of his grasp. They reached a point on the wall where the side was completely smooth. They couldn't climb anymore.

The creature stepped back, disappearing into the fog.

"Looks like he gave up," she said, "We have a smart one at last."

She was half right. The creature was _indeed_ smart, but it didn't give up. It backed up, studied its distance, and ran forward. Gaining momentum, Gorosaurus leaped into the air Kangaroo-style, kicking the wall of Crystal with a mighty thud.

The force was enough to shake the wall, loosening chunks of crystal from the large mass. It repeated the process, shaking the wall as it struck again and again.

"Use the grapplers!" Reiner yelled. "It's our only option!"

"The fog is too thick," Ymir called, trying to make her voice heard over the gigantic clashing of Dinosaur claw and crystal. "We can't see the top of the wall. We won't know what to grapple to!"

The Dinosaur's kick seemed to be pretty strong, as it nearly kicked a hole in the gigantic crystal. They had to think fast, otherwise they would be in the belly of Gorosaurus. Then Ymir saw the damage on the wall.

"Wait for the thing to break it," she said, "then we'll go through the hole!"

"Are you insane?!" he called out, "We can't escape that fast."

"We're out of alternatives." She said.

He sighed. She was right, this was their only option. With only two more kicks, the hole was formed.

"NOW!" Reiner yelled.

They grappled onto Goro's back, propelling them forward. Once they received footing on the dino's skin, they ran as quickly as they could, launching another hook outside the wall.

Just missing the dino's jaws they were through. The landing wasn't all that soft, thanks to crystal fragments all around, but they survived with a few scratches and bruises.

"I think," said Reiner, catching his breath. "I think we lost him."

They heard another sound, like two stones grinding onto each other. They looked into the hole they emerged from.

Gorosaurus scratched and squirmed his way through the wall, like a lizard burrowing its way through soil. With one last thrust, the Theropod made its way through. Gorosaurus gazed at his prey.

Before it struck, something in the fog caught hold of its tail. It was a hand that somewhat resembled a human hand. It pulled Gorosaurus into the mist in one swift motion.

Ymir and Reiner watched as the silhouettes of Gorosaurus and this new humanoid creature struggled against one another. Eventually, the humanoid threw Gorosaurus to the ground, pinning him with its foot.

To their horror, the thing jabbed its hand into the Dinosaur's chest. The Theropod's body trashed a little as the thing pulled out what looked to be Gorosaurus's heart. The thing turned its head, glaring those large glowing eyes at the shifters.

The Thing tossed the corpse of its saurian foe, landing by their feet. The Gorosaurus's mouth bubbled with a bloody foam and a large crystal growing from the hole in its chest. The thing then slowly walked off, disappearing completely.

_Meanwhile…_

The Survey Corps had been walking for a good twenty minutes. Hange had ordered them to retreat back to Tanakibo to restock their supplies. Thanks to the battles here, their Grappling lines had been cut to ribbons, their food depleted, and at least forty percent of their men killed.

On the plus side, they had not seen any more mantises thus far. Also, they managed to capture one of the Shockirus. This live specimen will not only serve as proof to the dangers that dwell here, but also provide a good test subject for study.

But more importantly, they were able to get away from the spiky creature. Who knows what would happen if it followed them back to town. The citizens had enough to worry about already.

As they rode the last of their search horses, a pair of reptilian eyes watched them go by.

"What do you think Levi's reaction will be about all this?" Armin asked Eren, trying to get him to talk again. Alas, to no avail.

"If you ask me," Connie said, "He's going to be pissed. I'm betting he won't like knowing that there's more to this place than giant bugs."

A sudden thud prevented them from going any further. As they prepared for attack, a new monster arose from the wood.

A beast by the name of Varan crashed down, scooping two horses into his large mouth. While it chewed, the humans tried to fight it off with blade and tether, to little avail.

As Armin was flung away by the monster's tail, he landed on a large sack of supplies, probably fell off from one of the devoured horses. He rummaged through the bag and found what he was looking for; signal flares.

He took three of them, aimed carefully, and shot them rapid-fire at the beast. While it wasn't powerful enough to harm the gigantic monitor, it did engulf it in smoke. Frightened and confused, Varan decided it didn't want to fight off these tiny creatures. But it wasn't leaving without a door prize.

As it left the haze it snatched Sasha into his mouth. Still exhausted, all she could do was scream as the large lizard scurried off.

"NO!" Eren shouted.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, something rammed itself into Varan, knocking him into three large trees. The dust cleared revealing the attacker. It was Anguirus. He roared at Varan, signaling that he was not happy with a giant lizard taking off with Sasha.

As Varan struggled to get up, the young monster charged in again, causing Varan to lose his grip on Sasha. Fortunately, her reptilian guardian had caught her in his paw. Thankfully, she was out cold due to shock.

Varan was enraged at this point. Multiple human-sized enemies were one thing, but a single opponent about half his size, he could take on easily.

Varan rushed in, snapping his jaws in Sasha's direction. Anguirus caught Varan's face with is other claw, pushing him away. Anguirus placed Sasha down as Varan came in for another attack. He performed an uppercut using his horn, slicing into Varan's belly. Varan retaliated by pounding on Anguirus's body.

The spikes on his back weren't developed yet, so they weren't enough to keep Varan from repeatedly beating him. Anguirus hunched over, hoping his shell could keep the lizard at bay. He fought back by biting the only thing close enough to him; Varan's leg.

Varan screeched in pain as he struggled against Anguirus's jaws. Varan continually struck Anguirus with his tail. This was painful for Anguirus, but he wouldn't allow Varan to harm Sasha.

The humans turned around to the sound of thundering hooves. Three figures, cloaked in Charcoal-grey robes, thundered in on horseback. They lept over Eren Jean and Armin, landing abruptly. Once they were close enough to the Kaiju, they dismounted.

"Who the hell are these idiots?" Jean shouted, "Get out of there NOW!"

But they ignored him and focused on the two colossi fighting. In unison, they crouched down onto the forest floor.

No one knew what they were doing, but Eren could hear it. The same song he heard last time he was in Titan form filled his head. This time, Varan and Anguirus seemed to respond. Varan backed away from his young opponent and slowly retreated into the forest. Anguirus reared, standing proudly as Varan disappeared. Anguirus bent down, pushing Sasha with his nose to see if she was ok.

The Survey Corps made their way to the hooded figures.

"Alright," yelled Mobilt, "This area is off limits. What are you doing out here?"

The strangers flipped their hoods to reveal themselves. Two of them were women none of them recognized, but the third one was familiar enough.

"Miss Saegusa?!" Cried out Eren. "What are you doing here?"

"We wanted to help," she said, "It's our city too you know."

She turned to her assistants and gave them their orders.

"Lora, Moll," she said, "check her for any injuries."

Moll and Lora nodded and rushed to Sasha's aid. As they examined her Anguirus came closer to the group, practically at Miki's feet. He crouched down with his face to her level.

"What's he doing?" Connie asked.

"Maybe he's found a new favorite." Smirked Jean.

"Simple Telepathy," Miki said, placing her hand on the saurian's nose. "I told him she would be safe with us. Right now he's curious about me."

"You mean you can _talk _to that thing?" Jean said in disbelief.

"Anguirus." She said.

"What?" Jean asked.

"His name is Anguirus." She replied back. "He just told me."

"Hold on," said Eren, piecing everything together, "You were in my head yesterday. It was during the Mantis attack. _You _drove off them off."

"You could hear that?" she said with a curious look on her face. "That's never happened before. I don't try to use my powers on other people."

_Maybe it's because I'm a Shifter,_ Eren thought.

"I don't believe any of this," Jean continued. "If you can _really_ control these things, then prove it. Make him do something."

Immediately, Anguirus scooped up Jean with his nose, his jacket caught on his horn as Angurius lifted him into the air. Everyone laughed. Admittedly, after a long day of fighting and terror, they needed this.

"So," she said, "have you boys gotten rid of the Mantises yet?"

"We have," Hange said. "But as you can observe, there's more here than just giant insects. All we found out is that most of them contain a preservative chemical in their bloodstream. But unfortunately, more of these creatures are popping up. We have no idea where their coming from."

"Maybe one of us does know," Armin suggested, gesturing at Anguirus.

Miki nodded, realizing exactly what Armin was talking about. While she placed her hand on Anguirus's face, her assistants had their prognosis. Sasha had been knocked out cold. Other than a broken arm she was fine. Thankfully, they had medical supplies with them in order to treat such things.

"Anything yet?" Mikasa asked.

"Nothing yet," she said, "I might have to dig into his instinctual half."

She remained silent with her eyes closed. She looked as if she was confused.

"I…It's hard to describe in words…" she said. She gestured to Moll and Lora, who took her hand. They in turn stretched out their free hands, looking to the Survey Corps.

"Link hands," said Lora, "and close your eyes. It'll show you what she sees."

At this point, no one had the strength to argue about this. They formed a human circle, linked all the way to Miki herself.

The moment everyone closed their eyes, images began to appear.

They saw a vast, near tropical landscape, full of exotic plants. The wildlife was just as strange. There were two species they recognized; Kamacuras and Varan. Other creatures included dinosaurs, gigantic insects and large birds. Each of them foraging, hunting, and interacting in their own groups.

Then time began to shift, like the images were on fast forward. The land became colder and colder. The animals buried themselves beneath the earth, just before the ice covered everything. Time moved forward again, as the ice melted, giving rise to different kinds of plant life. The creatures once buried emerged from the ground to forage and repopulate as if nothing happened at all. As the images progressed, the cycle repeated. Again and again, the creatures would bury themselves to avoid some kind of climate change or natural disaster, one of which was a meteor.

After about twelve or fourteen times, the cycle stopped. The imagery went to black. Suddenly, an orange light appeared in an immense burst. All the while, a voice screamed in agony.

_It burns!_ The voice yelled, _IT BUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRNSSSS!_

As the light died out, formations of crystal began to spring up at all angles. In the center, a pair of blazing eyes glared in rage.

Anguirus backed away, cutting the connection. Perhaps he was too frightened of the images to continue.

"What…was all that?" asked Mikassa.

"I Don't know," said Miki, trying to pull herself together.

There was a silence in the forest, except for the gasping by the humans. This silence only lasted for two minutes until it was interrupted.

"Wait…The preservative!" Armin said.

"What do you mean?" asked Hange.

"Alright," Armin said, "you know how insects and reptiles hibernate during the winter?"

"Go on." Said Mobilt.

"What if the creatures here do the same," he continued, "but instead of months, these creatures sleep for _centuries?_"

"And the preservative keeps them alive long enough to wait for entire climate changes!" Hange said, almost tearing with excitement. "They must've been doing this for generations. Incredible!"

"But wait," said Eren. "If that's the case, then why now? Why now of all times to awaken?"

Everyone paused on this.

"Maybe they _didn't _choose to awaken now." Answered Armin. "Perhaps something woke them prematurely?"

Armin's theory just opened the door to new dangers. If he was right, then they wouldn't be safe until the source of this disturbance was found.

_Meanwhile…_

Yimr and Reiner continued walking, following the path the thing had taken. After half an hour, something in the fog stood out.

It was a massive tower, over thirty stories high and composed of the familiar crystals. If it weren't for the thick fog, it would have towered over the forest.

"More crystals?" asked an annoyed Reiner.

Ymir came in closer, examining it.

"This looks old," she said, "not ancient, but a lot older than what we've seen."

"You think this is the source of our problems?" he asked.

Just then, the Thing had reappeared. It looked down upon them from 190 feet, with the same glowing eyes.

Reiner attacked in blind rage, swinging his blades at the clossus's foot. Ymir stayed quiet, like she had seen a ghost.

"Ymir!" he said, "Why won't you-?"

Before he could receive an answer, the Thing had picked Reiner up, slowly bringing him to its face. The creature was scrawny, with barely any skin attached to it at all. All over its body, purple crystals emerged from its flesh. But Reiner's reaction of horror came once he saw the face. That humanoid, near-skeletal face. That familiar face, one he would never forget…

"Berlot?!" he said in shock.

To be continued…

_AN: I didn't say I'd give away ALL the answers, so here should be enough till' next time. Next Chapter: more secrets revealed!_


End file.
